Tag: Politics

Jul 13

2021

Why Tony Masiello is supporting Byron Brown

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When Mayor Byron Brown announced his write-in campaign inside the Statler Terrace Room last month, he was surrounded by supporters that included one of Buffalo’s most recognizable political figures. As a fiery Brown pledged to press on despite losing the Democratic primary to India Walton, standing behind him, just to his right, was Anthony Masiello — the man Brown replaced as mayor 15 years earlier.   In the weeks since Brown’s announcement, Masiello has made the local media rounds, offering his thoughts on the mayor’s race and, at times, acknowledging his support for Brown’s write-in campaign. “I talk to the mayor[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jul 10

2021

Heaney, Arbetter discuss the mayor’s race

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Susan Arbetter, host of Capital Tonight, interviews Jim Heaney on the contest between India Walton and Byron Brown. Heaney told her Brown needs to make the case to voters that he deserves another term in light of his poor track record. Walton, he said, needs to stop talking about Democratic socialism, which he considers a side issue, and instead address concerns about her lack of experience in government. Watch the interview at this link.

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 30

2021

What the primary vote tells us

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The math of Byron Brown’s loss in the June 22 Democratic primary is simple.  The mayor’s traditional base of voters on the East Side stayed home, while voters on the other side of Main Street — from the Lower West Side and Allentown to the Elmwood Village — turned out in comparatively high numbers and overwhelmingly chose India Walton.  The result: Walton beat the four-term incumbent by 7 percent. Ken Kruly is a political analyst for WGRZ-TV, publisher of Politics and Other Stuff and author of Money In Politics for Investigative Post. In an analysis for Investigative Post, Kruly compared Brown’s[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 29

2021

Geoff Kelly writes for The Nation

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On the evening of last Tuesday’s primary election, I was reporting from Poize, a bar in Riverside where the India Walton campaign was holding a watch party. I’d just called my boss, Jim Heaney, to tell him it looked like Walton would win.  A roar came from the crowd inside as another wave of ballots was reported. I checked my phone: Walton had surpassed 10,000 votes.  An email popped up from the editor of The Nation: “Hey Geoff.  If India Walton pulls off an upset, can you get us 1000 words by Thursday explaining how she did it—and what it[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 29

2021

Heaney talks mayoral election on ‘Pressroom

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David Lombardo interviews Jim Heaney about the contest between India Walton and Byron Brown on The Capitol Pressroom. The interview was taped hours before Brown announced he would run as a write-in candidate.  

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 28

2021

Brown goes on the attack

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Byron Brown announced Monday he’s staying in the race for mayor as a write-in candidate, and the manner in which he did so indicates we’re in for an ugly, divisive campaign. Without mentioning her by name, he repeatedly denounced India Walton as a “radical socialist,” unfit to succeed him. “People are fearful about the future of the city,” he said at a late afternoon press conference. “They do not want a radical socialist occupying the mayor’s office.” Brown gave a powerful speech, polished and delivered with zeal, far from the halting, monotone addresses we’re used to. I guess it took[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 27

2021

Brown effort to gin up support

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Updated: 5:15 p.m. Mayor Byron Brown told reporters Friday he has received “an outpouring of support” encouraging him to wage a write-in campaign in November’s general election rather than concede his loss to India Walton in last Tuesday’s Democratic primary. According to text messages acquired this weekend by Investigative Post, the mayor plans to repeat that claim on Monday. But the support, rather than being spontaneous, is being orchestrated by his supporters, including associates of Carl Paladino. According to those texts, at least some of that “outpouring of support” is being solicited and coordinated by top Brown lieutenants in City[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Jun 25

2021

Rallying to save their patronage jobs

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Wondering whether Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown is giving serious consideration to mounting a write-in campaign to keep his job in November? The answer might have been in plain sight Thursday night at Sahlen Field, where Brown threw out the first pitch before the Toronto Blue Jays went on to drop the Baltimore Orioles, 9-0. Outside the park, a crowd of Byron Brown supporters gathered in front of the main entrance to make a pitch of their own. They wore T-shirts bearing Brown’s name and carried signs reading “Keep Byron Brown.” This was no extemporaneous, grassroots expression of support for the[...]

Posted 3 years ago
Investigative Post